MAY 15--The UK Ministry of Defence has awarded an £8.45 million, two-year contract to a team comprising QinetiQ, Thales UK, and SELEX Sensors and Airborne Systems, which has the management lead, to develop high-performance thermal-imaging technology for a variety of military applications. This new program, known as ALBION, will develop next-generation thermal-imaging technology that offers higher resolution, greater sensitivity, and lower cost than current technologies. This important work will see three types of thermal imagers developed using cadmium mercury telluride focal-plane arrays.
The sensors will offer military advantages in the detection, recognition, and identification of targets at night and in poor visibility. This technology can be applied in a range of environments and will be used on land, at sea, and in the air. Potential applications include advanced sensors on future armored vehicle programs, naval infrared search and track systems, and missile seekers for precision attack against difficult targets.
In 2008 it is hoped that the Ministry of Defence will seek to further develop the ALBION program, moving from a pilot to an operational phase and widening its use for specific applications identified in the initial phase.
